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Sunday, October 21, 2007:   If you want to be in a relationship with someone and you want that relationship to grow, you have to make time for them, you have to talk to them, you have to listen to them, and you have to share yourself with them, whether by sharing your hopes, dreams and aspirations, or just sharing your feelings.  These are ways we nourish a relationship to make it grow.  The same rules apply if you want a relationship with God, only these same acts (talking, making time, listening, sharing) are called prayer when dealing with God.  God wants a relationship with you...He is your heavenly Father, He created you, and He gives you life.  It is only right that we make time for God, that we talk with God, and that we try to listen to God.

Prayer isn't only a repetitive set of words or set prayers, like the Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be...  Prayer is communication, and through prayer we communicate our needs, our desires, our praise and our thanks to God.  But prayer is not one-sided and selfish.  When you talk with someone, you listen to them too.  When you want something from someone, you don't just give them a list of demands or chores...you ask them what they need to carry out the tasks, or provide the means to accomplish the tasks.  God doesn't need anything we have to offer, but He isn't a magical genie there to grant us our every wish either.  When we pray, we should look for signals from God that our prayers are being answered.  Sometimes God's answer is a "No" and other times it's a "Not yet."  This is why we should not give up on praying when our prayers aren't answered immediately, or are not answered in the way we think they should be answered.

Sometimes in prayer we need the help of others...not just ourselves.  It's interesting to note that since prayer is about communication and relationship with God, that God makes prayer more powerful when we pray with others with whom we have some sort of relationship...a spiritual relationship. 

Matthew 18:19-20 

The importance of persevering in prayer and faith are demonstrated in many places in the Holy Bible, but there are two stories that illustrate well the importance of persistence and perseverance.  The first is an excerpt from Exodus, when Amalek declared war on Israel...Moses told Joshua to gather men for battle, and Moses said he would stay on a hilltop with the rod of God in his hand.  As long as Moses' hands were up, Israel prevailed, but when his hands came down, Amalek began to prevail in battle.  Look at the importance of the help of others in this passage (verse 12):

Exodus 17:8-13

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Sunday, October 14, 2007:   How many times when you pray do you give thanks to God?  Many people find themselves praying when they realize they have run out of options, when they realize they cannot do it on their own, as a last resort, or only in emergencies.  Others pray daily, basically giving God tasks to do, people to bless, asking for things they want in their own lives...we've all done it, and there's nothing wrong with asking God for things, but it's VERY important to thank God for those things and blessings that He has already put in your life.  Why?  Because he wants us to thank Him.  It's a way of praising God when you give Him thanks and He deserves it. 

Personally, I believe that thanking God for whatever it is we are grateful for keeps us humble.  When we thank God for our health, our life, our material possessions, our relationships, our whatever, at the same time we our humbling ourselves because we are acknowledging that God made these things possible...not ourselves.  It's important to remember we accomplish nothing on our own, but that God has helped make it possible.  He gives us breath and life and without either one of these two things, we are dead organic material, or just dead bodies and dead weight. 

By thanking God we let Him know that we know He is responsible for all the good things in our life, we also are praising Him for them, and that makes God happy and more likely to fill our lives with more of the same things, and He will fill our lives with so much more and so much more abundantly when we are grateful for what we already have and for what He has already given us. 

All we need do is have a grateful spirit and tell God thank you for those things for which we are grateful.  We can also be more creative in our thanksgiving to God in many different ways.  We can make a new song and sing it for God, or if we are less musically talented, we can learn to play a new song on a musical instrument.  Other ways to thank God might be offering our time by volunteering for a charity or at church, or to the homeless person living under the bridge (maybe offer him/her food or clothing or asking what the person is most in need of other than money...many times they could use clean underwear or socks).  These are but a few ways of thanking God, get creative and thank God in your own way.  God does not expect us to pay for blessings like healings, but He does expect a grateful heart: "8 Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons. Freely you received, freely give." (Matthew 10:8)

In today's Gospel reading (Luke 17:11-19) and the reading from the Old Testament (2 Kings 5:14-17) we see stories of lepers being cleansed and healed by the power of God.  In the Old Testament reading, Naaman approached the prophet Elisha and asked how to be cured of his leprosy, and Elisha told him to dip into the Jordan river seven times and he would be cleansed of his leprosy.  Naaman didn't like what Elisha said because it was too simple and he didn't want to do it, until his men convinced him that if Elisha had told him to do something extraordinary, he would have done it, so why not something simple?  He goes ahead, dips himself in the river seven times and is healed.  He is so grateful that he tries to pay Elisha, but Elisha would not accept any gifts for the healing.  Not only that, but Naaman tells Elisha he will no longer offer holocausts or sacrifices to any other god but the God of Israel (Yahweh).  That is a truly grateful heart in God's eyes. 

2 Kings 5:9-17

In the Gospel reading from Luke, ten lepers approach Jesus on the road, keeping their distance, and asking for mercy.  Jesus tells them to show themselves to priests, and as they go on their way, they are all healed.  However, only one of the ten healed lepers makes his way back to Jesus to thank Him or praise God.  The one that came back and gave thanks to Jesus and praised God was a Samaritan, considered a foreigner to the Jews and a pagan and unclean.  For coming back and giving thanks, the Samaritan was saved, while the other 9 lepers were not...they were only healed.

Luke 17:11-19

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Sunday, October 7, 2007:   Words are powerful, so it's important to watch what we say.  Words from a coach can motivate a team or a personal life, and they can inspire us to great things.  The wrong words can hurt our feelings, hurt our relationships, destroy friendships, or scar us for life, whether it be through gossiping, a stern tongue-lashing, or whether they are spoken in the heat of anger.  Finally, words combined with faith can bring about miracles.

The Bible gives us clear insight into the power of words:

Proverbs 18:20-21

"20  A  man's belly shall be satisfied with the fruit of his mouth; and with the increase (produce) of his lips shall he be filled.

21  Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof."

These verses tell us our words are power and that what we say fills our life (belly), so we should choose our words carefully.  Our words have even the power to revive a person's spirit or to kill it, literally and figuratively.

Examples of this:

Proverbs 18:4

"4  The words of a man's mouth are as deep waters, and the wellspring of wisdom as a flowing brook."

In other words, deep waters can be tread, swam upon, can become rough as with a storm, and can drown or kill a person.  This is the spiritual power of our words.  Use self restraint in speech to prevent rough waters.  Words can also be a grand source of wisdom, help, or advice to someone in need of it.

Proverbs 18:6

"6  A fool's lips enter into contention, and his mouth calleth for strokes (blows)."

This means that words from fools enter into or cause contention (quarrels, arguments, fights, competition).  The last half of the verse can be taken to mean the fool would call for or instigate violence on another, OR could mean the fool might get a response of violence on the fool him/herself due to the fool's words.

Proverbs 18:7

"7  A fool's mouth is his destruction, and his lips are the snare of his soul."

This suggests the fool's words cause the fool's own downfall, loss of credibility, or even their own death.  Lips as a snare of the soul- a snare can be disabled so as not to cause harm (snare as in trap), or it can be a loaded trap for the fool's soul.  This is part of why it's better to choose our words carefully.

Proverbs 18:8

"8  The words of a talebearer are as wounds, and they go down into the innermost parts of the belly."

The words of a gossip or a slanderer hurt others to the inner depths of their souls, as if physically wounding them.  Their words are felt and usually felt as pain.  The pain felt is actually from a spiritual wound received through words.

Proverbs 18:13-15

"13  He that answereth a matter before he heareth it, it is folly and shame unto him.

14  The spirit of a man will sustain his infirmity; but a wounded (broken) spirit who can bear?

15  The heart of the prudent getteth knowledge; and the ear of the wise seeketh knowledge."

v.13- It is wise to first hear a matter or a person out completely before responding.  (This is used widely in business as a customer service skill).  Otherwise you are being foolish and it reflects on you as shameful, and possibly arrogant and stupid.

v.14- With a strong spirit you can overcome obstacles, like infirmities (sicknesses), but if your spirit is broken, for example- by words, then no one can help you but God.  The military uses this tactic of breaking one's spirit to train their soldiers to follow orders.  Solitary confinement in prison to break the spirit of the troublemakers, and torture to break the spirit of captured enemy soldiers.

v.15- Spend more time getting knowledge (learning new things), facts, wisdom, and less time talking is the point of this verse.

Proverbs 18:19

"19  A brother offended is harder to be won than a strong city: and their contentions are like the bars of a castle."

Words can easily offend, and once the damage is done (once the wrong words are spoken), the words can't be taken back, and the most difficult thing to do is to repair the damage caused to a relationship (even a member of your own family) by the offences of the mouth (words).

What we should do:

Proverbs 16:21-24

"21  The wise in heart shall be called prudent: and the sweetness of the lips increaseth learning.

22  Understanding is a wellspring of life unto him that hath it: but the instruction of fools is folly.

23  The heart of the wise teacheth his mouth, and addeth learning to his lips.

24  Pleasant words are as an honeycomb, sweet to the soul, and health to the bones."

v.21-23--  Wise people train their mouth so they can control the words that come out of it.  Listen to people cuss everyday...you'll hear them say something like "G-d dammit!"  Instead of blurting out a curse (telling God to damn something), why not work on changing the words that come out of your mouth and say something like "G-d bless it!" or leave God's name/title out of the equation and just say "Bless it!", because when you do that, God can change the circumstance that made you upset enough to blurt out a curse and make it work to your advantage (whether it be something as simple as spiritual growth in training your mouth, or something more complicated like getting you to view your situation from a different and peaceful point of view).

v.24- Pleasant and sincere words are health to our bodies and spirits, and they are sweeter to hear than phony peoples' insincere and usually degrading, hurtful and unhelpful words.  It's like when people say something like "a true friend would have told me" such and such...what that means is that the person doesn't want to hear insincere words like "oh yeah, that looks good on you" when it really looks horrible and the person is counting on your honesty for their own sense of vanity; or when a person asks for an honest opinion, sometimes a true friend will have to say something the other doesn't want to hear and that may hurt them a little to hear, but it's more important to the person to hear the truth, rather than not know or to be told what they think they want to hear.

More wise advice on life, but that also applies to our use of words and how words can affect others:

Proverbs 14:29-30

"29  He that is slow to wrath is of great understanding: but he that is hasty of spirit exalteth folly.

30  A sound heart is the life of the flesh: but envy the rottenness of the bones."

More scriptural quotes on the power of the tongue (our words) and how we should use them:

Psalm 34:12-14

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Sunday, September 30, 2007:   This week many churches celebrate the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi this coming week by bringing their animals to the church grounds to be blessed.  Here's a little bit about him from (other than what he is most noted for: founding the Franciscan order of monks).   http://www.americancatholic.org/Features/Francis/default.asp  :

-"St. Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of animals and ecology, was a Roman Catholic saint who took the gospel literally by following all Jesus said and did."

- "St. Francis of Assisi, lover of all creation, champion of justice, patron saint of animals and the environment, founded the Franciscan Order of monks. His feast day is October 4."

-More info on him is located here:   http://www.catholic-forum.com/saints/saintf01.htm but with regard to animals, this is all that is said here:  "Lived with animals, worked with his hands, cared for lepers, cleaned churches, and sent food to thieves."

St. Francis of Assisi is most associated as the patron saint of animals, but really other saints are better known as the patron saints of animals, including:  1) Anthony of Padua - "A gifted speaker, he attracted crowds everywhere he went, speaking in multiple tongues; legend says that even the fish loved to listen. Wonder worker." http://www.catholic-forum.com/saints/sainta01.htm  ;  2) St. Anthony the Abbot - "His relationship with pigs and patronage of swineherds is a little complicated. Skin diseases were sometimes treated with applications of pork fat, which reduced inflammation and itching. As Anthony's intervention aided in the same conditions, he was shown in art accompanied by a pig. People who saw the art work, but did not have it explained, thought there was a direct connection between Anthony and pigs - and people who worked with swine took him as their patron." http://www.catholic-forum.com/saints/sainta06.htm ; 3)  Blaise - "Healer of men and animals; according to legend, sick animals would come to him on their own for help, but would never disturb him at prayer."  http://www.catholic-forum.com/saints/saintb04.htm  ;  and 4) St. Nicholas of Tolentino - "A vegetarian, Nicholas was once served a roasted fowl; he made the sign of the cross over it, and it flew out a window."  http://www.catholic-forum.com/saints/saintn07.htm  .  Click on the links to read more about each of these saints...they did many wondrous things during their lives.

God made animals as helpers and companions for man.  Genesis 2:18-20 states:

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Sunday, September 23, 2007:   We are commanded to love each other, but sometimes it seems that other people, even our own selves, make this a difficult thing to do.  We find that people (or ourselves) fall short of our expectations, let us down in several ways, irritate us, impose on us, don't seem to carry their own weight in the house or on the job, their differing views on matters conflict with our own (or we find ourselves acting contradictory to our own values)...etc.  And those are just the people we get along with and love.

How much more difficult it is to forgive and accept these qualities in total strangers, especially those who steal from us, cheat us, try to hurt us for our material possessions, those who oppress us because they know they can get away with it.  It's even worse when such atrocities are committed by people we previously considered friends, family, or lovers.

Yet, Jesus commands us to do more than just love those who love us.  The Old Testament stresses the importance of loving others, yet securing your right to retaliation.  Jesus changed that focus into love for those who love you AND love for your enemies, because if you just love or act loving to those who act loving to you or those who love you, then you are being no different than anyone else...even evil people do the same.  Jesus wants us to stand out so he can see us as His, be perfect like our Heavenly Father, who is kind to the good and the evil.

Matthew 5:38-48

Luke 6:27-36

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Sunday, September 16, 2007:   Jesus has authority (and has given his disciples authority) over demons and spirits.  One grand example of his authority over them is exemplified in the story of Legion.  Jesus casts out a multitude of demons or evil spirits out of a man.  The spirits/demons made this man live in tombs, crying and cutting himself.  No man could bind the possessed man (he'd break the shackles or chains), and no man could tame or control the possessed man. 

Mark 5:1-15

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Friday, August 17, 2007:   I have compiled all the scriptures I could find on familiar spirits, divining spirits, and sorcery for people that have them.  It's important to understand that if you are not baptized and filled with the Holy Spirit of God, then those spirits or forces that are hanging around you are most likely demons...and demons CAN appear as angels of light because they once were angels of light...and when they fell from grace they became demons...they can still deceive you into believing they are "of the light" as New Agers might say.  This is not to say that all people that think they are getting communications from their angels are not actually getting communication (or even seeing) angels, but you should KNOW the risk and the REALITY.  God does NOT want us using divining spirits or consulting people with divining spirits as you'll see if you read the scriptures:

Sorcery, Familiar Spirits, Divining Spirits, and Wizards

-          Leviticus 19:31
Regard not them that have familiar spirits, neither seek after wizards, to be defiled by them: I am the LORD your God.
Leviticus 19:30-32 (in Context) Leviticus 19 (Whole Chapter)

-          Leviticus 20:6
And the soul that turneth after such as have familiar spirits, and after wizards, to go a whoring after them, I will even set my face against that soul, and will cut him off from among his people.
Leviticus 20:5-7 (in Context) Leviticus 20 (Whole Chapter)

-          Leviticus 20:27
A man also or woman that hath a familiar spirit, or that is a wizard, shall surely be put to death: they shall stone them with stones: their blood shall be upon them.
Leviticus 20:26-27 (in Context) Leviticus 20 (Whole Chapter)

-          Deuteronomy 18:10-14   10There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch.  11Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer. 12For all that do these things are an abomination unto the LORD: and because of these abominations the LORD thy God doth drive them out from before thee.  13Thou shalt be perfect with the LORD thy God.  14For these nations, which thou shalt possess, hearkened unto observers of times, and unto diviners: but as for thee, the LORD thy God hath not suffered thee so to do.

-          1 Samuel 28:3-22  3Now Samuel was dead, and all Israel had lamented him, and buried him in Ramah, even in his own city. And Saul had put away those that had familiar spirits, and the wizards, out of the land. 4And the Philistines gathered themselves together, and came and pitched in Shunem: and Saul gathered all Israel together, and they pitched in Gilboa.  5And when Saul saw the host of the Philistines, he was afraid, and his heart greatly trembled.  6And when Saul enquired of the LORD, the LORD answered him not, neither by dreams, nor by Urim, nor by prophets.  7Then said Saul unto his servants, Seek me a woman that hath a familiar spirit, that I may go to her, and enquire of her. And his servants said to him, Behold, there is a woman that hath a familiar spirit at Endor.  8And Saul disguised himself, and put on other raiment, and he went, and two men with him, and they came to the woman by night: and he said, I pray thee, divine unto me by the familiar spirit, and bring me him up, whom I shall name unto thee.  9And the woman said unto him, Behold, thou knowest what Saul hath done, how he hath cut off those that have familiar spirits, and the wizards, out of the land: wherefore then layest thou a snare for my life, to cause me to die?  10And Saul sware to her by the LORD, saying, As the LORD liveth, there shall no punishment happen to thee for this thing.  11Then said the woman, Whom shall I bring up unto thee? And he said, Bring me up Samuel.  12And when the woman saw Samuel, she cried with a loud voice: and the woman spake to Saul, saying, Why hast thou deceived me? for thou art Saul.  13And the king said unto her, Be not afraid: for what sawest thou? And the woman said unto Saul, I saw gods ascending out of the earth.  14And he said unto her, What form is he of? And she said, An old man cometh up; and he is covered with a mantle. And Saul perceived that it was Samuel, and he stooped with his face to the ground, and bowed himself.  15And Samuel said to Saul, Why hast thou disquieted me, to bring me up? And Saul answered, I am sore distressed; for the Philistines make war against me, and God is departed from me, and answereth me no more, neither by prophets, nor by dreams: therefore I have called thee, that thou mayest make known unto me what I shall do.  16Then said Samuel, Wherefore then dost thou ask of me, seeing the LORD is departed from thee, and is become thine enemy?  17And the LORD hath done to him, as he spake by me: for the LORD hath rent the kingdom out of thine hand, and given it to thy neighbour, even to David:  18Because thou obeyedst not the voice of the LORD, nor executedst his fierce wrath upon Amalek, therefore hath the LORD done this thing unto thee this day.  19Moreover the LORD will also deliver Israel with thee into the hand of the Philistines: and to morrow shalt thou and thy sons be with me: the LORD also shall deliver the host of Israel into the hand of the Philistines.  20Then Saul fell straightway all along on the earth, and was sore afraid, because of the words of Samuel: and there was no strength in him; for he had eaten no bread all the day, nor all the night.  21And the woman came unto Saul, and saw that he was sore troubled, and said unto him, Behold, thine handmaid hath obeyed thy voice, and I have put my life in my hand, and have hearkened unto thy words which thou spakest unto me.  22Now therefore, I pray thee, hearken thou also unto the voice of thine handmaid, and let me set a morsel of bread before thee; and eat, that thou mayest have strength, when thou goest on thy way.

-          2 Kings 21:1-6  1Manasseh was twelve years old when he began to reign, and reigned fifty and five years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Hephzibah.  2And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, after the abominations of the heathen, whom the LORD cast out before the children of Israel.  3For he built up again the high places which Hezekiah his father had destroyed; and he reared up altars for Baal, and made a grove, as did Ahab king of Israel; and worshipped all the host of heaven, and served them.  4And he built altars in the house of the LORD, of which the LORD said, In Jerusalem will I put my name.  5And he built altars for all the host of heaven in the two courts of the house of the LORD.  6And he made his son pass through the fire, and observed times, and used enchantments, and dealt with familiar spirits and wizards: he wrought much wickedness in the sight of the LORD, to provoke him to anger.

-          2 Kings 23:24
Moreover the workers with familiar spirits, and the wizards, and the images, and the idols, and all the abominations that were spied in the land of Judah and in Jerusalem, did Josiah put away, that he might perform the words of the law which were written in the book that Hilkiah the priest found in the house of the LORD.
2 Kings 23:23-25 (in Context) 2 Kings 23 (Whole Chapter)

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-          1 Chronicles 10:13
So Saul died for his transgression which he committed against the LORD, even against the word of the LORD, which he kept not, and also for asking counsel of one that had a familiar spirit, to enquire of it;
1 Chronicles 10:12-14 (in Context) 1 Chronicles 10 (Whole Chapter)

-          2 Chronicles 33:6
And he caused his children to pass through the fire in the valley of the son of Hinnom: also he observed times, and used enchantments, and used witchcraft, and dealt with a familiar spirit, and with wizards: he wrought much evil in the sight of the LORD, to provoke him to anger.
2 Chronicles 33:5-7 (in Context) 2 Chronicles 33 (Whole Chapter)

-          Isaiah 8:19-22  19And when they shall say unto you, Seek unto them that have familiar spirits, and unto wizards that peep, and that mutter: should not a people seek unto their God? for the living to the dead?  20To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.  21And they shall pass through it, hardly bestead and hungry: and it shall come to pass, that when they shall be hungry, they shall fret themselves, and curse their king and their God, and look upward.  22And they shall look unto the earth; and behold trouble and darkness, dimness of anguish; and they shall be driven to darkness.

-          Isaiah 19:2-4  2And I will set the Egyptians against the Egyptians: and they shall fight every one against his brother, and every one against his neighbour; city against city, and kingdom against kingdom.  3And the spirit of Egypt shall fail in the midst thereof; and I will destroy the counsel thereof: and they shall seek to the idols, and to the charmers, and to them that have familiar spirits, and to the wizards.  4And the Egyptians will I give over into the hand of a cruel lord; and a fierce king shall rule over them, saith the Lord, the LORD of hosts.

-          Ezekiel 13:6-9  6They have seen vanity and lying divination, saying, The LORD saith: and the LORD hath not sent them: and they have made others to hope that they would confirm the word.  7Have ye not seen a vain vision, and have ye not spoken a lying divination, whereas ye say, The LORD saith it; albeit I have not spoken?  8Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Because ye have spoken vanity, and seen lies, therefore, behold, I am against you, saith the Lord GOD.  9And mine hand shall be upon the prophets that see vanity, and that divine lies: they shall not be in the assembly of my people, neither shall they be written in the writing of the house of Israel, neither shall they enter into the land of Israel; and ye shall know that I am the Lord GOD.

-          Acts 16:14-35  14And a certain woman named Lydia, a seller of purple, of the city of Thyatira, which worshipped God, heard us: whose heart the Lord opened, that she attended unto the things which were spoken of Paul.  15And when she was baptized, and her household, she besought us, saying, If ye have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house, and abide there. And she constrained us.  16And it came to pass, as we went to prayer, a certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination met us, which brought her masters much gain by soothsaying:  17The same followed Paul and us, and cried, saying, These men are the servants of the most high God, which shew unto us the way of salvation.  18And this did she many days. But Paul, being grieved, turned and said to the spirit, I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her. And he came out the same hour.  19And when her masters saw that the hope of their gains was gone, they caught Paul and Silas, and drew them into the marketplace unto the rulers,  20And brought them to the magistrates, saying, These men, being Jews, do exceedingly trouble our city,  21And teach customs, which are not lawful for us to receive, neither to observe, being Romans.  22And the multitude rose up together against them: and the magistrates rent off their clothes, and commanded to beat them.  23And when they had laid many stripes upon them, they cast them into prison, charging the jailor to keep them safely:  24Who, having received such a charge, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks.  25And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them.  26And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one's bands were loosed.  27And the keeper of the prison awaking out of his sleep, and seeing the prison doors open, he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself, supposing that the prisoners had been fled.  28But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for we are all here.  29Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas,  30And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?  31And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.  32And they spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in his house.  33And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, straightway.  34And when he had brought them into his house, he set meat before them, and rejoiced, believing in God with all his house.  35And when it was day, the magistrates sent the serjeants, saying, Let those men go.

-          Acts 13:4-12  4So they, being sent forth by the Holy Ghost, departed unto Seleucia; and from thence they sailed to Cyprus.  5And when they were at Salamis, they preached the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews: and they had also John to their minister.  6And when they had gone through the isle unto Paphos, they found a certain sorcerer, a false prophet, a Jew, whose name was Barjesus:  7Which was with the deputy of the country, Sergius Paulus, a prudent man; who called for Barnabas and Saul, and desired to hear the word of God.  8But Elymas the sorcerer (for so is his name by interpretation) withstood them, seeking to turn away the deputy from the faith.  9Then Saul, (who also is called Paul,) filled with the Holy Ghost, set his eyes on him.  10And said, O full of all subtilty and all mischief, thou child of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord?  11And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon thee, and thou shalt be blind, not seeing the sun for a season. And immediately there fell on him a mist and a darkness; and he went about seeking some to lead him by the hand.  12Then the deputy, when he saw what was done, believed, being astonished at the doctrine of the Lord.

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-          Revelation 21:8
But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.
Revelation 21:7-9 (in Context) Revelation 21 (Whole Chapter)

-          Revelation 20:11-Revelation 21:8  11And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.  12And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. 13And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.  14And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.  15And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire. Revelation 21 1And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.  2And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.  3And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.  4And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.  5And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.  6And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.  7He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.  8But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.

-          Revelation 22:1-17  1And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.  2In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.  3And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him:  4And they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads.  5And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever.  6And he said unto me, These sayings are faithful and true: and the Lord God of the holy prophets sent his angel to shew unto his servants the things which must shortly be done.  7Behold, I come quickly: blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book.  8And I John saw these things, and heard them. And when I had heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which shewed me these things.  

-          Revelation 22:1-17  (continued)  9Then saith he unto me, See thou do it not: for I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book: worship God.  10And he saith unto me, Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book: for the time is at hand.  11He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still.   12And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.  13I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.  14Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.  15For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie.  16I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star.  17And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.

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Friday, August 17, 2007:   If you have ever watched The Active Word with Pastor Bob Coy (Fort Lauderdale based), and seen his podium, you've seen this image of a swooping dove, representative of the Holy Spirit:

When I was in grade school (sometime between 3rd and 6th grade) I made this Holy Spirit dove in art class...LONG before I EVER had any interest in my religion, and decades before hearing about Pastor Bob Coy:

They both look the same, including the larger left side wing.  I wonder if it's a staple Christian image or a freaky-cool coincidence.  Okay, the right wing is a little different, but still very close!
 

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Monday, August 6, 2007:   Have you ever felt like your faith grew to a certain point (maybe from zero faith to believing enough to pray to God), and then maybe God didn't respond the way you expected, or not at all (at least in your limited perception), and you just got frustrated and decided God wasn't real or prayer wasn't for you?

    Everybody goes through this...it's called a test of faith.  God tests our faith to help us realize how limited our faith is, or how shallow or how broken it is.  God is capable of anything, but it's our minds and how we pray or what WE expect from God that limits God's power.  And because we are but dust and water with breath, living in our fleshly bodies, we get frustrated and tired and irritable when things don't go our way.  And sometimes we want to yell out to God and ask him why He's letting these things happen to us.

    And that's okay to do.  God understands that we get tired, irritable, frustrated with life and with Him, especially when we feel like God isn't answering us.  The fact is, we CAN yell at God, and though many times God WILL answer us, it is God's right to choose whether or not to answer us.  Second fact is, watch what you say in those times of anger or frustration, because even though we have the freedom to yell at God, EVERY word we speak, every thought we have, every single thing we do, we will give account of at our time of judgment.

    The movie Bruce Almighty shows us an example of someone (Bruce, played by Jim Carrey) in such a situation, after feeling like his career is at a standstill, having lost a promotion to anchorman to a co-worker...Bruce yells at God after trying to pray for guidance, and wrecking his car in the process.  King David may or may not have yelled at God, but we can read the Psalms and see definite frustration...wouldn't you be if the King you served personally had made you go into hiding because he was jealous that God left him and was with you, and therefore the King sent his men after you to kill you...over the course of many years?  That was David's experience under King Saul.

    Here's a clip of Bruce losing it and yelling at God.  Below are some Psalm verses that match what's going on in the movie to a degree:

    Psalm 77: 1-3

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Sunday, July 22, 2007:   Back from a wonderful trip, browned by the sun, and over the excess of solar radiation with which I let myself overindulge.  God bless my relatives and friends back there, and please heal Tio Carlos' wrist, Tia Marta's knees and eyes, Ceci's body from M.S., Tia Regina's pain or discomfort, and help Elsie find Mr. Right, and Freddy to keep on with school and work and whatever she wants to gain from it.  Also, guide those that need guiding and comfort those that need comforting, and bless all my family back there, in Jesus' name.  Amen.  Thank you for this vacation, Lord, and bless my dad and mom for making it possible!

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Examples of How to Live and Be More Like Jesus:

1) Stop sinning

2) No deceit in your words or from your mouth

3) When reviled by others, don't revile them back

4) When others make you suffer, don't threaten them, but rather commit yourself to God

5) Live righteously

(from 1 Peter 2:21-25):

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Saturday, July 7, 2007:   This will be my last post for a couple of weeks because I'll be out of town.

Today I updated the info in the link to God the Father at the top of the middle frame of the webpage (www.JesusIsMyRedPill.com) to include the various names of God listed in the Holy Bible.

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How to discern (distinguish) between heavenly wisdom ("wisdom from above") and devilish or demonic or worldly wisdom - (James 3:13-James 4:4)

Heavenly wisdom is 1) pure, 2) peaceable/gentle, 3) easy to ask for and receive, 4) full of mercy and good fruits of the spirit, 5) impartial...with God there is no respect of persons, and 6) it is sincere (not hypocritical).

Demonic/Devilish/Worldly wisdom is 1) full of bitter envying and strife in peoples' hearts, 2) is not asked for from God, or if it is asked for, it is asked improperly for the sake of our lusts 3) may come from the lusts that war in our bodies, 4) and is friendly towards world, which means it is at odds with the will of God and therefore is at war with God.

(James 3:13-James 4:4)

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Monday, July 2, 2007:   Simpson's clip: Catholic vs. Protestant Heaven:

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Sunday, July 1, 2007:   The Prophecy of the New Covenant-  Today I was reading the Bible and came across the prophecy in the book of Jeremiah (Old Testament) which speaks of the the New Covenant God will make with His people (through Jesus...the New Testament), and this ties nicely with my last entry on June 28, 2007, which cross references the New Testament (Hebrews 8:6-13 and Hebrews 10:16-18).

(Jeremiah 31:31-34)

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Thursday, June 28, 2007:   The New Covenant-  God will put His laws in our minds and write them in our hearts.  He will be merciful to our unrighteousness, and will no longer remember our sins and iniquities.  The old covenant is no more.  All this because of Jesus' holiest sacrifice (Himself) as high priest of a more perfect ministry.  Hebrews 8:6-13, and Hebrews 10:16-18.

(Hebrews 8:6-13)

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Thursday, June 21, 2007:   Jesus tells us in the Gospel of Luke chapter 16 a few interesting things about the afterlife, heaven and hell, and how those in heaven will be able to see those in hell and vice versa.  If you watch the movie Little Nicky, you get what a modern day version of this might look like based on our technology of broadcast video.

Here's the story Jesus tells in Luke 16:19-31

***NOTE:  The full clip is no longer available on You Tube, so if I get my hands on the DVD I'll put the clip I wanted here.  There are two clips in the movie that show this concept of those in heaven and hell able to see each other...the one described above, and towards the end of the movie Satan and Nicky talk to Nicky's mother (the angel) through said "device".

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Sunday, June 17, 2007:   Today I updated two links on the home page (God the Father and God the Holy Spirit).  The link for God the Father goes to a compilation I made a long while back from the Bible detailing God the creator and Father of us all, along with character traits and how much we should reverence Him.  The God the Holy Spirit link goes to a compilation I made today, so that is a new page.

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I love Family Guy, and have collected a number of clips from the show and placed them on this website, but I just found this online...a collection of ALL the known God and Jesus clips in Family Guy.  Some I find offensive, but again I'm relying on God's sense of humor...forgive me Lord if any of it is offensive to you.  Enjoy:

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Sunday, June 10, 2007:   If you haven't already noticed or if you are reading this on MySpace, today I updated the main page on the website (www.JesusIsMyRedPill.com for those of you on MySpace), specifically adding the pages/links "The Bad News" and "The Good News".  Click each one to read.

Got Jesus?  Get Jesus!  Enjoy this clip from South Park.  Kenny dies and goes to heaven?  Nope.

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Tuesday, June 05, 2007:   Few people today believe in demons and evil spirits, but they exist, and Jesus even warned us about them.  Jesus gave us power over evil spirits and even gave us ways to oust the difficult and powerful ones.  Pastor Chris Simpson (I know him through my friend Minister Bo) wrote a booklet called "Deliverance From Evil Spirits", and it is available for viewing for free online at http://www.newwineonline.com/files/pdf/publications/newwineDES.pdf   .

    So I thought I'd post a bit from the booklet..."WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS OF INDWELLING SPIRITS?":

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Sunday, May 27, 2007:   Today I added the main page links for "What is hell" under the area for Hell and the Lake of Fire, and under the Health area the links for "Physical body" (keys to physical health) and "Your Quality of Life".

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My last entry included an insight on Sabbaths, and later I encountered this verse on Sabbaths in my reading, and feel I should include it:

Isaiah 58:13-14     13"If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honourable; and shalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words:    14Then shalt thou delight in thyself in the Lord; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it."

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And now another clip from Scrubs:

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Tuesday, May 8, 2007:   Here's a funny clip from Scrubs.  I found a funny Krishna clip for a Krishna friend the other week, and was wanting a Jesus clip for my website, and today this episode came on in syndication:

Insight on the Sabbath (day of rest)

Nehemiah 13:15-22 shows how easy it is for people to corrupt something as simple as a day of rest...something most everyone wants or needs, but something few people give themselves.  People (I do anyway) seem to think of a day of rest as an impossibility because there's always something to do, there is always something to be done, and there is always stuff we are behind on and need to catch up on.

Think about it...God gave us a commandment to take a vacation...a day off...EACH AND EVERY WEEK.  When I think of it like this, it seems to me a person would have to be crazy or stupid to turn this down.  One day off each week, do nothing but think on God, praise Him, and be with family.  Once day off each week to say "Screw work."  We are given a day each week to focus on God and enjoy Him and His creation as intended...a taste of paradise, perhaps, to remind us of the goal of all our hard work:  eternal life.

These verses in Nehemiah show how easy it is for us as people to give in to a form of bondage:  work.  If we buy, someone must work to sell.  Rather than God's possible intention that everybody be off on the same day.  This way family and friends could all be available for get-togethers (a form of communion)...visiting, spending time together, bonding.

God wants us to commune with Him, and He wants us to commune with each other.  Make time to do this, and you will see it can be a battle, is a lifelong war with yourself because the world is continually trying to put you behind, making you feel unable to accomplish something that should be simple...taking one day off each week.  But it will be worth the fight.

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Wednesday, April 25, 2007:   Consider this: 

God made us in His own image.

God has senses.  We have senses.

God is ultimate potential and power.  We have potential and potential for power.

Yet God is able to do so much more than we ever could.  He created everything out of nothing, speaking it into existence.  He gives each and every thing that lives life and breath.  He provides for all our varied needs, as well as those needs of the animals, insects, the life in the sea, in the universe, and everything.  We, on the other hand must be coerced to take care of our own needs, or the needs of those close to us.  Let alone, every single thing out there.

Imagine God and His potential and his real-life activity zone (including abilities, powers, knowledge, etc.) as the entire range of the electromagnetic spectrum from Cosmic rays all the way to Electric power and whatever may lie above:

See that rainbow on the chart above?  That is the visible light spectrum.  Now picture human potential as the same chart, but our real-life activity zone (or what we actually exhibit from our potential) would just be the part of the spectrum from say yellow to red in the visible light spectrum, or some small range from adjacent colors.  Notice God is a master of them all, we are masters of none, and active in few.

We, His creation, do not operate in the full spectrum of our potential.  The Bible tells us because of sins.

When you get right with God, you gain access to operating with more of the spectrum (handled by God) through a right relationship with him.  You get in a right relationship with Him through repentance and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, along with prayer and a personal relationship with Him.

What potential lays untapped in you?

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Thursday, March 8, 2007:   "THE BOOK OF REVELATION:  THE MARK OF THE BEAST"

This post is in response to the antichrist cult I saw a little of on a program called "Heartland" on a Fox News Channel (cable channel 38 in Houston) and another (possibly the same?  I don't know) cult in Sugarland, TX in which the leader claims to be Jesus returned, and who owns a tattoo parlor, patented a 666 tattoo design in the shape of a flower (sort of...imagine a set of three 6's with the loops touching but the top part facing away from each other), and asks his followers to receive the tattoo mark.  He preaches that there is no such thing as sin and "getting the mark" is meaningless.  True, at this point in time, it is, and it will probably be in the future when the real Jesus returns and the antichrist comes to power.  I'll explain further down.

When people read the book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ (by John), and come across the reference to the mark of the Beast, they assume it is the number "666" since that is what is stated...or so it would seem.  But this is not necessarily so.

Revelation 13:18 reads:

18Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.

Before going further, let me backtrack and explain the relevance...in the end times (based on the book of Revelation and on the gospels in which Jesus taught about the end times), Satan will come to power, deceive the whole world, make everyone receive his mark in order to buy and sell and to show loyalty and in essence submissive worship to his beast and antichrist, and hunt down those that will not worship and those that will not receive his mark on their wrist or foreheads.

Matthew 24:4-5 (Jesus tells us, after being asked what the sign of his coming and the end of the world will be):

4 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.  5 For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.

In verse 22 of the same chapter, Jesus tells us the days will be shortened, otherwise no flesh would be saved, even the elect of God.  To me that could mean the days will no longer be 24 hours in length, or it could mean the number of days of tribulation would be shortened.

In verses 23-26 Jesus tells us more about the false prophets and false Christs in the end times and who not to believe:

Matthew 24:22-26:

In verse 27, Jesus tells us about his own return in the end times:

 These are some specific details of the coming of the end and of Jesus' return.  So, if you didn't see him come down from heaven in a cloud, then the person claiming to be Jesus is NOT in fact Jesus returned.  This is important to know, because the false prophet, under Satan's plan, will attempt to deceive the whole world, including Christians, so don't think he's above making a false prophet with the same marks as Jesus (pierced hands and feet from crucifixion, and pierced side, etc).  `

There are three time periods referenced in the Bible, and each time period has its requirements for entry into heaven after death.  Those that don't get into heaven go into hell, awaiting final judgment and those whose names are not listed in the Lamb's Book of Life (the Lamb being Jesus) will be cast into the Lake of Fire for eternity, along with death and hell, Satan and his angels, the antichrist and finally the beast. 

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Revelation 19:20

20And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.

Revelation 20:7-15 describes what happens after Satan is released from the bottomless pit after the Millennial reign of Christ Jesus:

The time periods are:   1) Old Testament age to before Christ died and resurrected (BC),   2) the New Testament age (church age through the rapture), and 3) the Tribulation age (from the rapture through the end of time or until the millennial reign of Christ).  In the Old Testament age, you had to live by the Mosaic law and not die in sin (without atoning for sin by blood sacrifice of animals according to the law in the book of Leviticus and the book of Deuteronomy).  In the church age, mankind is to spread the gospel and preach repentance and baptism in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins (Acts 2:38...38Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.).  In the Tribulation age (the first three and a half years of it) God's angels will seal 144,000 people with the seal of the living God and have them preach the gospel of going to wherever the beast/antichrist/Satan has set up to behead Christians, and have their heads cut off in order to get into heaven...very simply put, during those three and a half years, you get into heaven automatically if you did not receive the mark of the beast, did not worship the beast, and you got your head cut off for this reason. (Revelation 7:2-4... 

 In the final three and a half years of the Tribulation, angels will fly around preaching that the way to get into heaven is by NOT receiving the mark of the Beast and not worshiping him.  Also, in the final three and a half years of tribulation, you won't be able to die, no matter what...God won't let you, so that you experience His wrath to give you opportunity to repent:

Revelation 9:6

6And in those days shall men seek death, and shall not find it; and shall desire to die, and death shall flee from them.

(in context):

Revelation 9:1-12

Okay, that was a lot of info, not enough info, and too much info to be understandable without you having read the Bible or the Book of Revelation.  So, let me try to make sense out of it by posting all of Revelation chapter 13, for clarity and then continue with more on the number of the Beast:

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Revelation 13

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Tuesday, March 6, 2007:  This is what I spoke about in church this past Sunday to counter the claims of the James Cameron docu-drama on the allegedly found "Tomb of Jesus".  First, let's not get excited about this find...the EXACT same thing happened back in 1926.  The following is taken from http://www.jesusfamilytomb.com/the_tomb/yeshua_bar_yosef.html :

The discovery of the other tomb in 1980, which is the basis for Cameron's film, does have many more Biblical names that seem to fit, and may possibly be the tomb of the family of Jesus, but I guarantee there are no bones of Jesus the Christ in there, which I will prove Biblically.   Also, the film biases a viewpoint that Jesus and Mary Magdalene were married and had a son, but the film doesn't even consider the possibility that the tomb was a shared tomb...(keep in mind early Christians sold their property and shared their possessions with other Christians, viewing each other as brothers and sisters, whether or not there was a blood relation).  So, the tomb may contain Mary Magdalene, but that does not mean she and Jesus were married and had a kid.

Keep in mind that all of the apostles (excepting for Paul) were martyred for spreading the gospel...Dr. Gene Scott once said that if Jesus and his resurrection and ascension into heaven (and his divinity) were a lie, and if Jesus were just dilly-dallying around with a family, Jews from wherever he lived would notice, but more importantly the apostles would NOT have suffered the torture and death, nor laid down their lives for a lie...would you?  No.  It was a dangerous time spreading Jesus' gospel back then, and punishment in the form of scourging (click link to find out what scourging is), stoning to death (people hurling big stones at you until you die), and crucifixion (which resulted in death).  Do you know ANYONE crazy enough to suffer these things for a lie?  Let alone 12 disciples at the start?  I don't think so. 

And though Paul didn't die by crucifixion, he began as a top leader in the Pharisees (the religious leaders of the Jewish faith) who was going around intent on killing and harassing the early Christians, imprisoning them as well.  Jesus appeared to Paul (Saul at the time), and made him blind, sent him to a Christian community and he became one of the most faithful believers/converts of all the apostles of Jesus, spreading his word and starting churches up in much of the known world.  He also wrote a majority of the New Testament in the Holy Bible.

With this in mind, let's look at some scriptural proofs of Jesus' death and resurrection.  The night before writing this I caught a show called Heartland on a Fox News channel, and they were doing the show on the upcoming Tomb of Jesus docu-drama that aired Sunday (3/4/07), and they had on a guest speaker for a "Christian" cult whose leader (years ago) claimed to be the reincarnation of St. Paul, then later years changed his stance to that of being Jesus Christ returned, and now who claims to be the Antichrist (and whose followers give up to 50% of their income and accept a tattoo of 666 on their wrist or foreheads)...so, the following scriptural proofs counter that foolish cult as well:

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(Prelude to concrete proofs)

2 Timothy 4:3-5

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Tuesday, February 27, 2007:  Tonight was the first night I was told to teach Bible Study.  I was told last Thursday or Friday and had no topic until last night at 10:30pm.  So I finally decided on the topic of "Love", researched it and took notes until 1:30am, and below is what I taught tonight at church:

LOVE:

There are 3 types of love in the Greek language:

1) Agape (og-ah-pay) = Love in the holy sense.  Unconditional love.  Divine love.  Self-sacrificing love.

2) Eros = Romantic or sexual love.  Passionate or erotic love

3) Philia = brotherly love.  The love between friends.

What follows below is applicable to ALL 3 types of love.

In the Bible, the word "charity" is the equivalent of "love"...they are synonymous.

1 Corinthians chapter 13 defines love and all its attributes:

Verses 1-3: 

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2)  1 Corinthians 2:9

9But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.

-God has such great things in store for us, our life, our family, etc, if only we would love Him in the way He wants us to love Him (putting Him first in everything and obeying Him and His commandments) that not one person on earth could even fathom them, nor see them, nor hear about them because it's a personal thing between us and God.  He blesses us each in different ways if we love Him.

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3)  2 Corinthians 6:6

6By pureness, by knowledge, by long suffering, by kindness, by the Holy Ghost, by love unfeigned,

-Love is not feigned (faked).  Love is truthful, honest, and sincere in other words.

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4)  Faith works by love, therefore faith is fueled by love.

Galatians 5:6  

6For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.

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5)  Love is a fruit of the Spirit.  We are encouraged to develop fruits of the Spirit, and love is one type of "fruit".

Galatians 5:22-23

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6) Husbands are to love their wives as their own bodies.  If you love your wife, you love yourself.  Jesus said when God joins a man and woman in marriage they are no longer 2 people, but rather they are 1 person.

Ephesians 5:28-29 and verse 33

33Nevertheless let every one of you in particular so love his wife even as himself; and the wife see that she reverence her husband.

-Keep in mind that the Bible tells us the husband is the head of the wife and the wife is the head of the husband...they are one.

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7)  Love comforts our hearts.   Colossians 2:2  

2That their hearts might be comforted, being knit together in love, and unto all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the acknowledgement of the mystery of God, and of the Father, and of Christ;

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8)  Love is a labor (you must work for it, work on it, and work at it).  1 Thessalonians 1:3

3Remembering without ceasing your work of faith, and labour of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God and our Father;

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9)  Love and Faith are the breastplate in the armor of God.  1 Thessalonians 5:8

8But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation.

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10)  Love not the world or the things in it, because they all will perish and be replaced.  Not only that, but the world is not our permanent home/abode.  They physical world was ruined and slated for destruction when sin entered into it.  God destroyed the world once with water (the Great Flood), and will destroy it again with fire in the end time, along with those people and things in it that are not slated to be saved.

1 John 2:15

 15Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.

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11)  1 John 4:18  There is no fear in love.

18There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.

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12)  God rebukes and chastens those he loves.  Revelation 3:19

19As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.

(rebuke = an act or expression of criticism and censure; "he had to take the rebuke with a smile on his face";  call on the carpet: censure severely or angrily; "The mother scolded the child for entering a stranger's car"; "The deputy ragged the Prime Minister"; "The customer dressed down the waiter for bringing cold soup")

(Repent = be sorry for...to the point that you turn away from it)
 

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Tuesday, January 30, 2007:  Last night, I was reading my normal chapter from the Old Testament, chapter from the New Testament, and chapter of Revelation.  I have lately felt like God has been distant in my readings.  I used to get some really great insights and understanding from the Holy Spirit after reading.  Lately, I have felt like my relationship with God has been ritualistic and not the intimate friendship it was for the last couple of years back...not that I felt abandoned by God, but that He has not made his presence known in such intimate fashion as of late via reading.  My prayers had become stale and repetitive, and seemingly unanswered in what to me are vital questions that I need answers to...guidance and such.

    Well, I was finishing the Gospel of Luke, chapter 24 v. 51, "And it came to pass, while he (Jesus) blessed them, he was parted from them, and carried up into heaven." when I noticed a cross-reference to Psalm 68:18, a prophetic verse about Jesus, which reads: "Thou hast ascended on high, thou hast led captivity captive: thou hast received gifts for men; yea, for the rebellious also, that the Lord God might dwell among them."

    When I read that I felt like God had reconnected that personal touch to our relationship because that verse answered one of the vital questions I had been seeking guidance on.  THANK YOU, JESUS!!!!!!!!!!

    Then I came across Psalm 142-144, which were of even more comfort to my soul.  I really felt like God was still with me.  And then I turned on the television and came across a new favorite "preacher" (more of an educator of Jesus and apostles' histories), the late Dr. Gene Scott.  I got turned onto his show after I could not take my eyes off his widow Pastor Melissa Scott (until just now I thought she was his daughter, then I looked at their website http://www.drgenescott.org/ ).  She is difficult to follow sometimes, but one of the most beautiful women to watch, and she sings well too.  Dr. Gene Scott's presentation last night focused on Psalm 143, which was one of the above mentioned Psalms which I felt was God's way of comforting me and answering me at the same time.   The show focusing on said verse just made that feeling even MORE substantial.  THANK YOU, FATHER GOD, JESUS, AND HOLY SPIRIT!!!!!!!!

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Monday, January 29, 2007:  Last Friday or Saturday on the job (I'm a handyman's assistant...the handyman is my pastor), we went to buy tin roofing for a room addition we are finishing up.  The business is owned by a Christian, so when we went in the office to pay for the materials, on the counter was a business card that read, "Please take one with you" and beneath it was "The Resume of Jesus Christ".  I thought that was really cool, and I'm sure this has probably been an email circulation, but I thought I'd post it anyway.  Here are some pics of it:

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Thursday, January 11, 2007:  Belated Happy New Year!  Actually, I'm early for Chinese New Year and Muslim new year I think...maybe it's just Iranian new year...yeah, that might be it.  Anyway, I am reconstructing the front page in hopes that I will better organize the clutter monster the blog has become...Thank you God for helping me find the search engine code!

I had an odd dream image from a week or so ago.  I remember seeing about 5 or 7 railroad spike type "nails" that would be used in crucifixion.  I remember that each one was in front of me, and each looked a little different from the others.  Some looked nice and shiny, others old and worn, some with designs or unused, others plain or used.  I think they were in a hand...not through a hand, but presented on the palm of a person's hand.  Well, today I was working on a roof on a mosque, and I find this on the roof (I had been up there before and not seen this):

This is a much smaller version of what I dreamed, but it looks VERY much the same in shape.  Weird that it manifested into my reality.  This looks like a miniature railroad spike that I imagine is a smaller version of what pierced Jesus' hands or wrists in crucifixion.  I keep wondering, should I be worrying???

Well, I have been very lax in my website duties, but vow to improve my postings, especially more scripturally relevant, spiritually important, and still fun stuff. 

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This past Sunday for my words of exhortation by the ministers, I did a bit about the movie Run Lola Run, and how as a movie unlike others, it gives us a better idea of how far above OUR ways God's ways are.  The Bible says that God's ways are so far above our ways, that "the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men" 1Corinthians 1:25 .  What I mean is that most movies go in a linear fashion, or in the case of Pulp Fiction, a disjointed linear fashion...something happens, the characters react to situation, movie continues on that line of reaction to situations.  In Run Lola Run, the first 20 minutes of the movie sets up the situation:  Lola gets a frantic call from her boyfriend Manni stating that he lost the American equivalent of $60,000 of his mob boss's money and if she can't help him come up with that money in the next 20 minutes, he'd be a dead man.  The movie then takes the viewer through 3 different versions of what happens in the next 20 minutes of their lives.  What does that have to do with God's wisdom, or how his ways are so far above ours?

Well, Proverbs 5:21 tells us "The ways of man are before the eyes of the Lord, and he pondereth all his goings."  In the movie, the three different "next 20 minutes" result in drastic results for each of the characters involved (or encountered by Lola or Manni).  The movie does a "photo flash forward" of each of the characters Lola or Manni encounters, showing what happens to each of them  in the near and distant future.  In each of the different 20 minute scenarios, the characters either end up going a certain way and getting mugged, but from that meeting their future wife, or in one or another character will die by the end of the 20 minutes.  The point is that tiny little changes (like Lola tripping down the stairs at the start of the second 20 minute sequence) made her get to her dad's office (the only person she could think to rely on to come up with the $$, since he works at a bank) results in her walking in on her father in the middle of an argument with his mistress.  This time her anger gets the better of her and she robs her dad's bank.  In the first sequence she got there a little before the fight, but still walks in on her dad and his mistress talking, and he says he'll help her as he escorts her out in her confusion.  Proverbs 14:12 says "There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death."  In the first 2 sequences, it doesn't turn out well for neither Manni nor Lola.  But in the third sequence things obviously come out the best way possible for everyone.  Well, God has a plan for our lives and he wants our lives to be lived abundantly and fully.  We can ONLY receive this kind of life when we are in line with His word and have a personal relationship with Him.  He considers every possibility and outcome, and wants to give us those things we want and need (the Bible says "we have not because we ask not" (exact verse: James 4:2-4).  The movie only considers 3 scenarios in the lives of a limited number of people and the variety of outcomes possible from simple and seemingly unimportant happenings...like someone stopping on your car to delay you long enough to avoid a fender bender (in the movie).  God considers a multitude more possibilities for each and EVERY one of our lives...imagine the complexity of THAT!!!  And he has our best interests at heart, so it's best to get in line with him.

A nice side-story in the movie is the character Mr. Meyer, as business associate of Lola's dad.  In each of the 20 minute sequences this poor man gets in fender bender.  In the first 2 sequences, Lola runs past his vehicle as he exits a parking garage, and distracted by her he ends up hitting the same white car...first time in the front broad-siding the car, and in the second broad-siding the rear of the same car.  In the third sequence, Lola jumps stumbles onto his hood and stays long enough for Mr. Meyer to miss the car, get to her father on time to pick him up for a lunch meeting, thereby making Lola miss her dad entirely by the time she gets to his office at the bank.  So, she finally gets it right and prays to God that he help her, saying she'll keep running and she'll leave it to God to stop her at the right place.  On the way, a truck nearly runs her over, but sees her chance (I won't give it away, but don't try it if you see the movie).  On her way back to Manni, an ambulance stops suddenly near her, and she hops in, only to discover Mr. Meyer inside and the paramedic frantic and unable to stabilize his condition or his vitals.  Mr. Meyer extends his hand, and Lola takes it in her hands, sits there holding his hand looking him in the eyes.  His vitals become slow and steady.  The paramedic is astounded and relieved.  Lola became Mr. Meyer's comforter.  "Comforter" is another name for the Holy Spirit.  This scene demonstrates healing touch, which is mentioned numerous times in the Bible (touch is usually a precursor to many healings in the Bible).  Mark 1:39-45 is a perfect example, in which a leper showed his faith in Jesus by saying if he willed it Jesus could will that he (the leper) would become whole (healed).  In this scene, Mr. Meyer didn't have faith in the paramedic, and he was undoubtedly afraid.  Lola, because he knew her and she was with him was his comforter, and by touching him, he felt that comfort even more.

I challenged everyone to be more like God and consider the possible consequences of their actions or inactions (like not talking to people about Jesus and getting saved)...it could result in their death or the eternal loss of those peoples' souls.  Also, I challenged them to be comforters to others.  That is part of our duty...to comfort those that need comforting...just look at the parable of the good samaritan (Luke 10:30-37).

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Tuesday, December 19, 2006 (PART 2):  Another clip from Clerks II.   Got Christ?  Boredom's the first step on the road to relapse, says Jay.

Here Randall debates coworker Elias on whether or not the Transformers cartoon was a sleight against God:

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Tuesday, December 19, 2006:  Lord Jesus, I thank you for Sue.  Sue, happy birthday!!!  ILU!

Here's a clip from Clerks II in which Jay (of Jay and Silent Bob) explains how he can sell weed and stay sober through the power of Christ.  Then he tells his customers to read the Bible:

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Sunday, December 17, 2006:  Here's an introduction into who Satan is, how Satan works in everyone's life, but most importantly showing that destroying your soul is such a way of life for Satan that he'll distract you with whatever works.  He's a liar, and his job is to deceive you into a sense of security when in reality your life or your soul is in eternal peril.  Satan also fills up your daily life with unimportant things like tv, games, chores, distractive people, and work to such an overwhelming degree as to disconnect you from God, life, and peace in your daily life.  He can appear as addictions, aberrant emotional behaviors or addictions, or as people and/or angels of light.  Satan was God's number one angel until he fell from grace, continued to fall, and never returned. 

    The music video below is called "Liar" by the Henry Rollins Band (thank you so much for the music videos Rose!  Mwaah!)  When I first saw this video in the early 1990s, I only saw it as a bad boy slimy guy video.  But now I see it as a perfect metaphor for how Satan works his way into our lives, and as far as I know the lyrics are not gender-specific to the song.  The video imagery in the music video itself seems to lend credence or validity to this point (when he sings the chorus "I'm a liar", he is painted red, which is typically how Satan is propagated in today's society; also, there is always fire burning in the background as he sings the chorus, and one of the lines is "I'll burn your soul").  So, for the person I spoke with at the party this weekend who was determined to burn in hell for her beliefs even if God were to tell her they were wrong, here's an introduction to Satan as envisioned by the Henry Rollins Band (whether they know it or not)...the song is "Liar"  Enjoy.

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Saturday, December 9, 2006:  Forgive me, I have been lax in my website duties.  I saw Clerks II, and will include some clips from that movie here on the site soon.  Also, expect the look of the page to change...I am thinking out how to improve the site with better organized areas and hopefully a search engine for the site (I'll need to research that).  So, bear with me through the changes.

This past Thursday the ministers and I were supposed to come up with a 10 minute speech on Baptism, so here is an outline of what I came up with:

I.  Baptism as defined by the dictionary:

    A. Baptism (defined):

        1) A Christian sacrament marked by symbolic use of water to rid the recipient of original sin and resulting in admission into Christianity. 

        2)  A ceremony, trial, or experience by which one is initiated, purified, or given a name.

        3)  A submergence in Spirit or purification by Spirit.

    B. "Baptism of fire" (defined):

        1) A soldier's first combat experience.

        2) A severe ordeal experienced for the first time

    C. Baptize: (defined)

        1) To cleanse or purify

        2) To initiate

        3) To administer baptism

    D. Why Use Water and Fire for Baptism?

        1) Both water and fire are agents or catalysts used in the purification of people, places, and things according to Numbers 31:23 .

                a) Water: cleans (under the Law it was necessary to wash things or yourself to be purified from defilement and or diseases like leprosy), it brings life (water sates our thirst and without water we die in days; also, water makes seeds sprout and grow into food and materials for our needs).  The Great Flood purified the world by water.  God used water to destroy Egypt's grip of bondage/slavery on the Jews.  The Jews had to cross the river Jordan (a body of water) to be purified again before entering the Promised Land, and these same waters purified the minds of the people in the sense that it was reinforced in their heads and the heads of the survivors, "There is a God, and nothing can reckon with God." 

                b) Fire: mostly purifies metals, but in the spirit world, God is a consuming fire, Jesus will baptize us with fire (God or the Holy Spirit), visible evidence of the Holy Spirit was as tongues of fire resting above the heads of the apostles (Acts 2:3).  Fire purifies by destroying impurities: examples Sodom and Gomorrah (two cities leveled and destroyed by fire from the sky (meteors or volcanic rocks, either way sent by God) (Genesis 19:20-30), and in the final days fire will destroy most life on earth (Revelation 8:1-13)

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***Note: Before I go on with what I came up with, I spoke with the pastor to review everything I had come up with, and he wanted me to know the official 4 Baptisms recognized by the apostles: 1) Noah, 2) Moses, 3) John (repentance), 4) Peter (Acts 2:38 repentance and rebirth)****

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Continuing what I came up with...mostly me jotting ideas down as the popped into my head, then getting the supporting verses, I may as well sort the info here before posting, so it's not as disjointed as my notes:

II. Types of Baptisms found in the Holy Bible

    A. Baptism unto Noah-  Out of the entire world, only 8 people survived the flood released by God almighty to purify the earth from all the evils spawned by not only man, but also by the power men were endowed with when the sons of God mated with the earthly women.  Water destroyed to purify.  8 people overcame the water, saved by righteousness (Genesis chapters 6-9)

    B. Baptism unto Moses-

        1)  Moses led the Jews out of bondage (slavery) in Egypt by parting the Red Sea for safe passage for the Jews, and then closed the sea on Pharaoh's army as they chased after the Jews. (Exodus Chapter 14)  So, water saved from bondage by destroying the evil, again.

        2) Not even Moses made it to the Promised Land, the land promised by God almighty as an heritage for the Jews, but Moses DID get to see if from a mountain peak before he died.  The whole lot he took out of Egypt had to die before God let the Jews into the Promised Land (Deuteronomy chapter 34)...that means only the young next generation was allowed in...again, God purifying the people before starting them anew elsewhere.  Point is, they had to cross the Jordan river in order to get into the Promised Land.  The Jews were the seed and the Jordan river was the means of watering the seed of the promised generation.  Also, this could be symbolic of feet washing as well...walking across the river is sure to wash your feet before entering the new land of promise (Joshua 1:1-8), also for another mention of the baptism unto Moses              (1 Corinthians 10:2-4).

    C. Baptism unto John- Repentance for the Remission of Sins (Mark 1:4-5)  (Jesus was baptized this way)

      1) People were baptized in water

        2) They confessed their sins before being dunked

    D. Baptism unto Peter (Acts 2:38) - Repentance and Spiritual Rebirth into Lord Jesus the Christ (you become one in/with the body of Christ)

        1) Baptize in water in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ

           2) You are buried to sin (going into the water) (Colossians 2:12), and

           3) You are born a new creature (Galatians 6:15), no longer bound by death in sin (spiritual rebirth or better put: actual spiritual resurrection

            4) You can now have the opportunity to receive the gift of the Holy Ghost (God himself living inside you, interacting with you on a personal level)...but you don't have it yet...you must either tarry for the Holy Spirit or a minister or qualified pastor must lay hands on you and the Holy Spirit will be upon your body. (Acts 8:13-16)

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Okay, that covers the technically accepted forms or instances of baptisms.  But here's more of the stuff I found that qualify as either interesting to know, or needs to be looked into more:

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    E. Other "Baptisms":

        1) Baptism unto Elias (aka Elijah)-  Elias/Elijah sealed up the sky for 3 years, letting no rain fall in Israel, causing a drought for that time period. (James 5:17 and 1 Kings17:1-3)

          2)  Baptism of Fire (Matthew 3:11) (defined in dictionary as 1: Soldier's first combat experience or 2: A severe ordeal experienced for the first time)

                a) Jesus' Baptism of Fire- the abuse and death he must go through, by the very people he came down to earth to save, will likely be God's first taste of death, so this may better be named "Jesus' baptism of death", since God, the source of life, has never been dead.  Jesus makes mention of this in Luke 12:49-13:5 and it foreshadows the kind of death he must endure.

                b) Elijah also brought down fire from heaven on a few occasions: once to prove his God was the real God and disprove the false prophets he called fire down from heaven to consume a water-drenched meat sacrifice (1 Kings 18:20-38), which in turn was surrounded by a trough of water, like a mote;  the other 2 times it was to consume the 50 men and soldiers sent by the king to talk to him...each time killing 50 men for a total of 100 men killed.  (2 Kings Chapter 1) and (Luke 9:54)

                c) Baptism of the Holy Ghost (aka "Baptism of Fire") (again Matthew 3:11, Mark 1:8 tells us Jesus will baptize us with the Holy Ghost).  God is described as a consuming fire (as we saw with Elijah's accounts), but also describing the look of God and sometimes angels (Daniel 10:5-12).  Another way to receive the Holy Ghost: laying on of hands by qualified minister or qualified pastor (Acts 8:14-17).  Jesus tells us in the gospel of John 3:1-8 that in order to enter into the kingdom of heaven, you must be born again of water and of spirit, so getting the gift of the Holy Ghost/Spirit is a requirement for getting into heaven, and you can't get it until you've first been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.  Also in Acts 2:1-5 we see an account of the Holy Spirit visible as tongues of flame that came down and rested above the heads of the apostles when they received the Holy Spirit with evidence of speaking in tongues.

        3)  Baptizing in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. (Matthew 28:16-20) as commanded by Jesus.  I believe that means initiating the world into the laws of the Father (Old Testament Law and commandments), the Son (Jesus's laws and commandments), and the Holy Spirit (gifts/talents/powers and abilities you receive when you get the gift of the Holy Spirit).

        4)  Baptism unto the angel in the pool of Bethesda for healing (John 5:1-8)

    F. The Benefits of Baptism

        1)  If we believe and are baptized, we are saved (Mark 16:16-18 shows the signs that follow believers)

           2)  Purification and cleansing in the spirit world.

           3)  Initiation and assimilation into the Body of Christ.  You become inseparable like a blood cell...but beware: if you become "cancerous" to the body of Christ you will be removed.

           4) You now may receive the gift of the Holy Spirit by either

                    a) tarrying for the Holy Spirit (a sort of group chanting meditation using Jesus)

                    b) or by the laying on of hands by a qualified minister or qualified pastor.

           5)  God will no longer tune out your prayers.  God will tune INTO your prayers will answer you in ways you won't imagine or believe until it happens to you.

            6)  You have become born of water (one of the prerequisites for entry into heaven)  (John 3:5)

            7)  You have what it takes to be born of spirit now (receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit...baptism is a pre-requisite for having the Holy Spirit alive, active  and able to communicate to you from within you.

            8) You have been baptized into one body (1 Corinthians 12:13) and that body is Christ (Galatians 3:27)

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And to conclude here, since I couldn't think where to put this tidbit of info...here's an example from the Bible of an unusual experience occurring from a baptism.  Philip was baptizing a eunuch and the Spirit of the Lord caught Philip away to another place almost instantly  (Acts 8:36-40).

And that concludes everything you never wanted to know about Baptism.  Now GET BAPTIZED in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and save yourselves!

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